Culinary utensil.



A. R. FRISZ.

CULINARY UTENSIL.

APPLIGATION FILED JUNE 12, 1911.

Patented Nov. 28, 1911.

l/WEIVTOR ATTORNEYS) WITNESSES:

ANNA R. FRISZ, OF TERRE EAUTE, INDIANA.

CULINARY U'I'ILIiTSIL.v

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 28, 1911.

Application filed June 12, 1911. Serial No.- 632,814.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANNA R. FRIBZ, a citizen of the United States,residing at Terre Haute, in the county of Vigo and State of Indiana,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Culinary Utensils,of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates generally to culinary utensils, being directedspecifically to a combination lifter and strainerdesigned to be employedas an auxiliary implement in conjunction with a cooking vessel primarilyadapted for retaining food while the latter is being-cooked.

The salient features of the invention reside in a body portion adaptedto rest upon the bottoin of a cooking vessel and receive the food to becooked and embracing a per-' meable element designed to strain theliquid portion of thecooked food as the latter is lifted, by means ofthe same device, fromsaid vessel, and in adjustable, foldable liftinghandles connected to the body portion whereby the lifter and strainermay be adjusted for use with vessels of different size and also foldedinto compact, convenient form when found expedient.

The object of the invention is the production of a device wherebylifting and straining food cooked in deep vessels, ,as in a firelesscooker or the like, may be greatly facilitated and accomplished in onemovement, resulting in an appreciable saving of time and labor overordinary methods commonly employed wherein the food is not properly andcompletely strained and which necessitate the lifting thereof from thevessel in portio only at a time, due to the inability of the usuallifting utensils ordinarily-employed, such as a fork or straining spoonto secure lifting contact with the cooked food as a whole from beneaththe same.

The invention will now be described in the following specification takenin connection with the accompanying drawings, and thenmore particularlypointed out in the' appended claim.

Referring now to the drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan of the improvedlifter and strainer showing the handles in folded position. Fig. 2 is acentral vertical section ofthe same. Fig. 3 is a central verticalsection of a cooking vessel, showing the lifter and strainer operativelypositioned therein. Fig. 4 is a perspective view illustrat' theinvention in unfoldedposition, and ig. 5 is a 4 broken perspectiveillustrating a modified means of connecting the frame and handles.

Having reference to the drawings, 'wherein the details of the preferredform of the invention are shown and wherein like characters of referencerefer to like parts throughout the several views, 1 denotes the frame ofthe body portion of the lifter, prefcrably of circular outline in plan,of suflicientstifir'ness to obviate accidental bending or twisting inuse and to receive and maintain in operative position the lifting andstraining element 2 comprising a section of mesh fabric disposed withinthe frame 1 and tautly secured thereto in any preferred manner.

Secured on the upper face of frame 1 and appropriately positionedthereon is a plurality of bail ears 3, designed to receive and pivotallymaintain in operative relation retaining hooks 4 formed on the lowerterminals of the lifting handles 5, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. Saidhandles each include a slidable upper sect-ion 6 adapted forlongitudinal movement on the lower sections 7 to provide for verticaladjustment in accordance with the height of the vessel in conjunctionwith which the device is being used, said movement being guided and thesections retained in proper relative position through the medium ofretaining loops 8 formed on the lower terminals of the upper handlesections and on the upper terminals of the lower handle sectionsrespectively.

It is evident that if found desirable the handles 5 may be connected tothe frame 1 by means of suitably-spaced apertures 9 formed directly insaid frame, in which event the bail ears 3 would of course be dispensedwith and also thatthe frame may be formed of a section of materialfolded upon itself and the lifting and straining element disposedbetween said folds and securely ilamped therein, as at 10, asillustrated in It is of course contemplated to make the device ofnon-rustable material and in different sizes and weights as may be foundexlpedient for use with difierent cooking vesse s.-

In operation, after selecting the appropriate size and weight of thedevice desired, it is placed in the vessel in which the food isto becooked and the latter placed on the element 2,. the constructionproviding that said food thus placed is incidentally slightly spacedfrom the bottom of the vessel, as is desired.- If found expedient thehandles may then be partly folded one upon the other and the lid of thecookin vesselplaced in position. When the food is properly cooked it maybe, as evident, raised as a whole from the bottom of the vessel and theliquid allowed to drain off through the strainer 2, upon the completionof which operation the food may be conveniently and at one operationlifted from the vessel and deposited where desired.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

A culinary lifter and strainer for use with cooking vessels, comprisinga frame, a permeable element disposed within the frame to receive andsupport food to be cooked, and handles connected at diametricallyopposite points to the frame, each of said handles bebeing movablyconnected to the frame and 'the other slidably engaging the connectedsection, the extended relation of the sections providing handles ofgreater depth than the vessel with whichthe device is to be used, thecollapsed relation of the sections providing handles of a length lessthan the maximum transverse dimension of the device, whereby when not inuse the handles may be folded upon and wholly within the contour of thedevice and in use may be extended above the, vessel with which thedevice is used.

In testimony whereof, I afl'ix signature in presence of two witnesses.

ANNA R. FRISZ.

Witnesses:

HELEN SCHMIDT, BEATRICE BARSAFOU.

